Gas lantern and ignition system therefor

ABSTRACT

A mobile gas lantern in which gas is supplied through a conduit and burner nose to a fragile mantle. A manually actuated piezoelectric igniter system connects to electrodes which extend through the burner nose and establish a spark gap within the mantle to ignite the gas. The ignition system can be used for lighting one or more mantle assemblies simultaneously.

United States Patent m1 Berlincourt et al.

GAS LANTERN AND IGNITION SYSTEM THEREFOR [75] Inventors: Don A. Berlincourt, Chagrin Falls;

Earl O. Schweitzer, Wickliffe. both of Ohio [73] Assignee: Vernitron Corporation. Great Neck,

[22] Filed: Sept. 10, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 395,904

Related U.S. Application Data [63] Continuation of Ser. No 96.324, Dec. 9 1970.

abandoned.

[52] U.S. Cl. .4 431/109; 431/266 [51] Int. Cl. F2lh 1/00 [58] Field of Search 431/100, 109, 255, 266,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 777.871 12/1904 Washington 431/255 m lll 11- [451 May 13, 1975 932.273 8/1909 Hacking 431/110 X 3,428,408 2/1969 Ameyama et al... 431/255 3.439995 4/1969 Ilattori et a1. 431/266 3,462.234 8/1969 Bronson et a1 431/255 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 14,444 1899 United Kingdom 1. 431/100 Primary E.\aminerEdward G. Favors [57] ABSTRACT A mobile gas lantern in which gas is supplied through a conduit and burner nose to a fragile mantle. A manually actuated piezoelectric igniter system connects to electrodes which extend through the burner nose and establish a spark gap within the mantle to ignite the gas. The ignition system can be used for lighting one or more mantle assemblies simultaneously 10 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures i l I FIG IMXENTORS 00m A. ssmwcoum EARL o. SCHWEITZER FATENTEQ HAY l 3&975

ATTORNEY GAS LANTERN AND IGNITION SYSTEM THEREFOR This is a continuation of application Ser. No. H1324 filed Dec. 9. I970 now abandoned.

The invention relates generally to a gas lantern. par ticularly of the mobile type used in camping and. specifically. to a lantern in which the combustible fuel is ignited by piezo-electric means.

In the prior art. so-called camping gas lanterns are well known and are in common use. Conventionall). the lantern includes a gas supply conduit terminating into a burner nose from which a bag-like mantle is suspended whieh. after ignition of the gas. turns into socalled chemical ash" and provides a source of light. The mantle. in turn. is usually surrounded or enclosed by a protective glass globe. For lighting the lantern. the gas within the mantle is ignited by placing a match. cigarette lighter. or the like in close proximity to the external surface of the mantle. Care must be taken to avoid physical contact with the mantle due to the nature of the mantle fabric. Likewise. an accumulation of gas around the mantle must be avoided to prevent minor explosions at the time of lighting.

Experience has shown that the ignition of the gas within the mantle by means external to the mantle. whether manually or otherwise. results frequently. if not consistently. in minor gas explosions which are. at the very least, annoying and frightening to the operator of the camping set. It has been found that it is advantageous to light or ignite the gas close to the burner flame screen which is located within or formed as part of the burner nose. It has now been recognized that means for igniting the gas can be located within the mantle. i.e.. between the flame screen and the mantle bag. thereby avoiding the deleterious shortcomings of the prior art devices.

It is therefore the primary object of the present invention to provide a gas lantern in which the gas supply is lighted under safer and more convenient conditions than heretofore possible.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide ignition means within the mantle to ignite the gas emanating fron the burner nose.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an ignition arrangement for lighting the gas within the mantle to prevent the possibility of touching and damaging the extremely fragile mantle.

An aspect of the present invention resides in the provision of a gas lantern and an ignition system therefor which includes a substantially bag-like mantle and means for supplying a stream of combustible gas to the mantle. A piezoelectric ignition system is utilized which. upon manual actuation thereof. generates a voltage; and electrodes or leads are electrically associated with the ignition system to connect to the piezoelectric generator and to provide a spark gap substantially within or proximate to the stream of gas in juxtaposition to the inside of the mantle.

For a better understanding of the present invention. together with other and further objects thereof. refer ence is had to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings. and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is an elevational side view. partly in section. of a gas lantern in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. I showing a series arrangement of a plurality of lantern burners sharing a common gas supply and ignition generator; and

FIGS. 3 and 4 are illustrations similar to FIG. 2 showing modifications thereof.

Referring now to FIG. I there is shown a gas lantern I0 having a mounting frame 12 adapted for securing a source of gas supply. usually a small gas cylinder. or a gasoline tank. (not shown) which is connectable to a gas conduit 14 provided with a shutoff valve 16 and terminating. in a tube member 20. with an orifice I8. Combustible fuel. such as butane, propane. natural gas. vaporized gasoline. or the like. is discharged into the tubular member 20 through the orifice I8. The fuel is caused to be mixed with air which enters the tubular member 20 at the end 22. The end 22 of tubular mem her 20 is structurally connected to the mounting frame 12 by a structural bracket 24.

The axial end 26 of the tubular member 20 is threaded to receive a burner nose 28 which is composed of an internally threaded annular metal sleeve 28a and a tubular ceramic insert 28!) which is provided with an external annular retaining head (not shown) which projects into and abuts the inner face of the member 28a. The burner nose portion 28b is provided with an integral semi-spherical flame screen 30 at its lower end.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the burner nose may be made ol'electrically conducti\ c or non-conductive material. either as a unitary member or as described above.

A conventional mantle 32 of fabric-like material. which turns into chemical ash upon ignition. is secured to the burner nose 28 by means of asbestos thread 34 or similar material which simply ties the open end of the bag-like mantle structure 32 to the burner nose.

Inasmuch as the mantle 32 is extremely fragile once it is burned in." a glass globe 36 surrounds the mantle 32. The globe 36 is secured to the tubular member 20 by means of a support 38. Provision for air circulation may be made with openings in globe 36 or support 38.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided a piezoelectric voltage source 40 of the type which can be manually actuated in order to provide a suitable voltage source. Such devices are now well known in the art although. for further elucidation. reference may be had. for example. to U.S. Pat. No. 3.469.119 which discloses a manual. single cycle device. As the electric connection scheme diagrammed in FIG. 1 indicates. the piezoelectric voltage source 40 has one end connected to ground. see 42. by means of contact with the mounting frame I2. The opposite end connects to a hot lead or electrode 44 which is suitably insulated as shown at 46 and the insulated electrode extends through and along the tubular member 20 and past the metallic burner nose portion 281: and portion 28b. as well as through flame screen 30. Due to the ceramic (non-conducting) nature of the nose insert 28b and flame screen 30 illustrated in FIG. I, the insulating material of the electrode may be stripped therefrom either within the nose insert as shown in the drawing or slightly beyond the screen 30 to expose the bare electrode 44. In order to avoid shorting the circuit. care must be taken that the electrode 44 does not come in Contact with any metallic surface of the lantern. A ground electrode 48 is disposed with one axial end in close proximity to the terminal portion of the electrode 44 to establish a spark gap 51 therebetween within the mantle 32. The electrode 48 extends through screen 30 and burner nose 28 and is in electrical contact with the metallic surface of the tubular member 20. The electric circuit to ground is completed by virtue of the contact between conducting members 12 and 20 through the interposed metal bracket 24.

The spark gap 51 is located. as shown. within the mantle 32 and beyond the flame screen 30. However. it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the flame screen 30 may be located to the rear of the axial end of the burner nose 28 and thus it is possible and. in some cases. advantageous. to move the spark gap in closer proximity to the screen so that. under some conditions. the upper end of the bag-like mantle 32 will be forward. or lower. than the gap In accordance with the invention, it is of significant importance that the gap 5] be located between the rearward end of the burner nose and the opposite axial end of the mantle. although the relative axial location of the gap may differ in some designs.

In operation. the valve 16 is opened to cause a stream of gas or vaporized gasoline to pass through to the burner nose 28 at which time the piezoelectric device 40 is actuated to cause a spark to ionize the gap 51 to ignite the gas within the mantle.

FIGS. 2 to 4 show a multi-burner system having a common globe and frame (not shown) to provide a lantern in which the burners are simultaneously ignited by a single actuation of the piezoelectric voltage source 40. The electric circuitry must be adapted. in all instances, to accommodate the burner nose construction as hereinafter further explained. In many cases. it is merely necessary to ignite only one burner in a multihurner lantern with a common gas supply. If the burners are sufficiently closely spaced the one ignited will ignite its nearest neighbor. which will then ignite the next one. and so forth.

Referring specifically to FIG. 2 there is shown a lantern of the type and construction above described. Three burners are illustrated. see a. 10b and 100. The spark gaps for the burners are electrically connected in series with electrode 52 extending between the burners 10a and [01). forming in burner 100 a spark gap 510 with the incoming hot lead or electrode 440. In turn. in burner [Oh the hot lead or electrode 52 forms a gap 51h with electrode 54 with the latter extending into burner lOc to form a spark gap 51c with a ground electrode 481:. It will be appreciated that. in this system. the only electrode which is grounded extends from the spark gap in burner 100.

The modification shown in FIG. 3 includes. again. a three'burner lantern with spark gaps electrically in series in which the burners 10a and 10/) are identical to the burners above described. However. the burner 10d includes a burner nose 56 which is of an all-metal construction. This obviates the need for a grounding electrode (such as 48) inasmuch as a spark gap 58 is established between electrode 54 and the burner nose. with the latter connecting the gap 58 to ground through the tubular member In FIG. 4 the lantern differs from the lanterns shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 in that the complete burner nose 28' is. in all three instances. composed of an electrically conducting material such as brass or the like. As a result. it is necessary that in burners 10c and IOfthe electrodes 44a. 52' and 54' are insulated and. in that condition. project through the burner nose including the flame screen 30 thereof. to prevent shorting of the circuit. For similar reasons, the insulating material may be stripped from the electrodes only in such proximity from the flame screen 30 so that no substantial leakage occurs as the voltage builds up during actuation of the piezoelectric igniter 40. Due to the metallic nature of the screen 30 of burner 10g. a specific electrode to ground is obviated for the same reasons as already explained with respect to burner 10d of FIG. 3.

While there have been described what are at present considered to be the preferred embodiments of this invention. it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention. and it is aimed. therefore. in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A gaseous or vaporized fuel lantern and ignition system therefor. comprising:

a substantially bag-like mantle of a fabric which is ef fective to provide light when in close proximity to a flame. and structural means supporting said mantle.

conduit means for supplying a stream of combustible fuel to said mantle. said conduit means including at the terminal end thereof a burner nose having a flame screen provided with a plurality of apertures for letting the fuel pass therethrough exclusively and in direct contact to establish a flame within said mantle.

said conduit means having an opening to receive air therethrough to cause mixing of the fuel and the air prior to discharge of the fuel through the flame screen;

piezoelectric ignition means effective to generate a voltage upon manual actuation thereof;

and electrode means electrically associated with said ignition means and positioned to establish a fixed and stationary spark gap substantially within or proximate to the stream of said fuel and in internal juxtaposition to said bag-like mantle with at least one electrode protruding through said flame screen with its end terminating in close proximity to said screen.

2. A lantern according to claim 1. wherein said gap is located within said mantle.

3. A lantern according to claim 1. wherein said man tle substantially encloses said gap.

4. A lantern according to claim 1. wherein said mantle is secured to said nose. and said gap is located between one axial end of the burner nose and the oppo site axial end of the mantle.

5. A lantern according to claim 2. wherein the gap is located between said screen and said mantle.

6. A lantern according to claim 4, wherein said means for carrying fuel includes a conduit connecting to said burner nose; and wherein said electrode means include at least one electrode extending within said fuel carrying conduit.

7. A lantern according to claim 1, wherein said lantern is composed of a plurality of burners. each having a spark gap connected electrically in series to any other spark gap of the lantern and each said burner being connected to said means for carrying fuel. and wherein a single one of said piezoelectric ignition means is efleast one burner includes conductive burner screen 10. A lantern according to claim 8, wherein said electrode means establishes a spark gap jointly with said cunductive burner screen.

an electrically non- 

1. A gaseous or vaporized fuel lantern and ignition system therefor, comprising: a substantially bag-like mantle of a fabric which is effective to provide light when in close proximity to a flame, and structural means supporting said mantle; conduit means for supplying a stream of combustible fuel to said mantle, said conduit means including at the terminal end thereof a burner nose having a flame screen provided with a plurality of apertures for letting the fuel pass therethrough exclusively and in direct contact to establish a flame within said mantle, said conduit means having an opening to receive air therethrough to cause mixing of the fuel and the air prior to discharge of the fuel through the flame screen; piezoelectric ignition means effective to generate a voltage upon manual actuation thereof; and electrode means electrically associated with said ignition means and positioned to establish a fixed and stationary spark gap substantially within or proximate to the stream of said fuel and in internal juxtaposition to said bag-like mantle with at least one electrode protruding through said flame screen with its end terminating in close proximity to said screen.
 2. A lantern according to claim 1, wherein said gap is located within said mantle.
 3. A lantern according to claim 1, wherein said mantle substantially encloses said gap.
 4. A lantern according to claim 1, wherein said mantle is secured to said nose, and said gap is located between one axial end of the burner nose and the opposite axial end of the mantle.
 5. A lantern according to claim 2, wherein the gap is located between said screen and said mantle.
 6. A lantern according to claim 4, wherein said means for carrying fuel includes a conduit connecting to said burner nose; and wherein said electrode means include at least one electrode extending within said fuel carrying conduit.
 7. A lantern according to claim 1, wherein said lantern is composed of a plurality of burners, each having a spark gap connected electrically in series to any other spark gap of the lantern and each said burner being connected to said means for carrying fuel; and wherein a single one of said piezoelectric ignition means is effective to provide a spark substantially simultaneously across all of said gaps.
 8. A lantern according to claim 7, wherein at least one burner includes an electrically conductive burner screen.
 9. A lantern according to claim 7, and in which at least one burner includes an electrically non-conductive burner screen.
 10. A lantern according to claim 8, wherein said electrode means establishes a spark gap jointly with said conductive burner screen. 